School superintendent starts new job in a ‘whirlwind’

Rebecca Hammel, the new Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Nashville, was interviewed by Ben Hall for the Issues of Faith tv program on Thursday, Sept. 6. The show will be broadcast on the NewsChannel5 cable channel several times in September. Photo by Rick Musacchio

Rebecca Hammel, the new Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Nashville, arrived in her new job on Monday, Aug. 27, and went to work getting to know the diocese, its schools and its people.

“It’s like a whirlwind at this point,” she said. “I’ve been meeting a lot of good people.”

“What I have been really impressed by is the desire to assist Catholic schools in the diocese, a true desire to make our schools as good as they can be. That’s very impressive,” Hammel said. “It seems a lot of people are already on board with the mission.”

Hammel’s task, she said, “is to understand the culture here and help move it into the future.”

One of her charges in her new position is to develop a marketing strategy for the schools in the diocese, which is an area she has experience in in her previous job as Associate Superintendent of Schools for the Archdiocese of Atlanta and other administrative posts she’s held.

“Marketing and enrollment, I know, will be a top priority,” Hammel said. “The first priority is to understand enrollment trends over time and the capacity at each school. That will drive our marketing efforts.”

“We know the trend of Catholic education is on the decline,” Hammel said. “In certain regions it’s happening far more quickly than it is here.

“Now is the time to stay ahead of the curve,” she added. “I see a lot of opportunity here for marketing.”

According to Hammel, “It feels like we’re at the tipping point where all the fun is ready to start.”

The goal of any marketing plan for Catholic schools should be to engage people in their mission, Hammel said. “That speaks more to people’s heart. That really brings them into the community.”

One of Hammel’s early tasks will be assembling a staff to assist her. Marketing and enrollment will be the focus of one of the staff positions, she said. Hammel will consult with the diocese’s principals about their needs in determining the area of responsibility for any other staff members, she explained.

During Hammel’s first week on the job, she attended the celebration of the Mass of the Holy Spirit at Aquinas College and witnessed Aquinas’ president, Sister Mary Agnes Greiffendorf, O.P., make a solemn profession of faith, take the Oath of Fidelity and receive the Academic Mandatum, promising to teach within the full communion of the Catholic Church.

Aquinas, which is owned and operated by the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia, is hoping to offer more faith formation programs for Catholic school teachers. Hammel said she would like to pursue such an opportunity with Aquinas.

She said it would be “a mutually beneficial partnership.”

“That partnership with the sisters is very important to me,” Hammel said. “I have so much admiration for them and what they do for Catholic education.”

Hammel is familiar with the Dominicans through her friendship with Sister Mary Agnes. They are in the same cohort working toward a doctorate in Catholic Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

“We’re so excited to have her here,” Sister Mary Agnes said of Hammel, her classmate.

She also knows Sister John Mary Fleming, O.P., who has recently taken on the position of Director of Education for the Dominicans, whose main apostolate is Catholic education. “It is a position analogous to the superintendent of schools for the Dominicans,” Hammel noted.

Hammel also knew Sister John Mary during her time as the executive director of the Secretariat of Catholic Education for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.